


Let's Build A House Where We Can Stay

by i_amthecosmos



Series: The Small Town Series [16]
Category: My Chemical Romance, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Found Family, M/M, Moving, Talk of adoption, friends - Freeform, past ray-mikey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-15
Updated: 2018-07-15
Packaged: 2019-06-11 01:17:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15304230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/i_amthecosmos/pseuds/i_amthecosmos
Summary: Out of the blue, Liam and Louis get a chance to buy a house.





	Let's Build A House Where We Can Stay

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place a little bit before Accidents Will Happen. I had half of this sitting around for months and just revived it. Title from the Housemartins song "House". (Yes I know that song is anti building new homes for the rich, but I'm stealing the chorus anyway. That band's been broken up for years.)

When Liam thought about it, he should’ve expected it to work like this. They had been saving for years hoping that someone would sell them a house. They’d even tried to buy a few, only to find real estate agents would suddenly stop taking their calls. Liam had mostly made up his mind that nobody was going to sell them a house in this town. 

Then one day, the phone rang when he was home alone. Louis was out, visiting local people with AIDS to give them meals and free haircuts. Liam was spending a quiet afternoon in with a beer and some old movies. “Hi, Jo?” It was her number. 

“Hi. Is Louis there?” Liam just barely got out that he wasn’t when she got to the point. “I just wanted to let you know that Louis’s Aunt Kathy finally ran off that bum she was living with, and now she wants to sell the house. Do either of you mind a fix-up? It’s pretty shabby in some ways.” 

“Uh.” Liam was caught unprepared. “I’ve never seen it, but let me talk to Louis. He should be back soon. But thank you. Thank you for letting us know.” 

They talked a bit longer, and then Liam hung up, numb. He sat down and waited for Louis to come home, wondering in what condition the house was in, and how much Kathy would want for it. 

About an hour later, Louis showed up. He’d gotten a ride with his volunteer buddy, and came in, tossing his jacket on the couch. “Sorry it took so long, Ben’s not doing well and he wanted someone to talk to, Alan’s looking better, I think the AZT is working for him…”

“Your mother called,” Liam said. “She said your Aunt Kathy might want to sell us her house.” 

“She...what.” Louis sat down across from Liam, looking at him in shock. “Did she call to tell you this?”

“She did,” Liam said. “She said the house needed work, but that she thinks Kathy’s serious about selling. Louis, this could be the break we need.” Liam leaned forward. “Do you want to call your aunt and arrange to go look at the house, at least?” 

“I didn’t even think she liked me, she’s involved in one of those holy roller churches,” Louis said. “Maybe she just told my mom she wanted to sell and mom told us. But yes, if she’ll let me in the house, I’ll take a look at it. We’ve got a good down payment saved now, don’t we?” 

“About five thousand dollars, yes.” They were in rural Georgia, so that was a good down payment. “Have you ever seen the house?”

“Yeah. I warn you, Aunt Kathy’s not much of a housekeeper. The house itself is all right. There’s at least two bedrooms. You know, just in case we ever...” Liam nodded. Talking about children always got Louis emotional. He wanted a child more and more. They were getting older, and were stable. Louis longed for a little girl, and Liam felt the same way.

“Well, give her a call. See if she’ll let us take a look.” Louis went to the fridge first, getting a beer and some chips from the pantry, and then grabbed the phone. Liam cleaned up the living room as Louis had a long, rambling conversation with his aunt.

After about thirty minutes, Louis hung up. “Okay, she’s letting us come over. She had to vent about kicking her boyfriend out. And she’s quit the church, since they blamed her for that fucker cheating on her. She told me she was okay selling to us. She just wants to sell the house and move on fast.” 

“Sounds excellent, when can we come over?” Liam went over and gave Louis a hug. He tried not to get excited, but part of him hoped that this would happen.

“Tomorrow, she’s going to be there all day, but told us to come for lunch instead of going to mom’s. I’ll have to call mom now and tell her we’re not coming. Don’t think she’ll mind under the circumstances.” Louis sat down. “I feel gross, I ate nearly all those chips when I was on the phone.” 

“You rest then, I’ll call Jo,” Liam said as he got up. He found some leftovers for himself as he made the call. “Okay, that’s taken care of.” He heated up his dinner in the microwave while Louis laid back on the couch.

“I wonder if she’ll really sell it to us,” Louis said. “What if she takes that asshole back? It’s happened before.” Liam leaned over and squeezed his shoulder. 

“Don’t worry about that, we’re just going to see a house. She hasn’t made us any promises yet. If she backs out, we’re no worse off than we were before.” 

“That’s a mature way of looking at it,” Louis agreed, moving so he was propped up. “I don’t know what I’m going to say to her. I don’t actually know her all that well.”

“It’ll be all right,” Liam said, eating the leftover pasta. Louis had made it, and it had turned out fairly well. After almost ten years, his cooking skills were getting better. Louis would joke about having to be able to fix breakfast for the kids. It wasn’t really a joke. 

They tabled that conversation for the rest of the night, and slept curled up with each other. 

…

Liam was nervous when he drove them out to Kathy’s. It was out in the country a bit, still in the same county but further from the center of town. They drove to the address Kathy had given them, and found themselves at an old white farmhouse. There were blue shutters, and some tea roses out front. From the car, it looked quaint and homey.

When they got out though, Liam could see the outside needed a new coat of paint, and the shutters looked old as well. He wondered what the inside would look like as he rang the doorbell. 

“One minute!” A loud voice with a pronounced accent said, and they waited. There was some rustling inside, and then a bleached-blonde woman with a sunburn and a shoulder tattoo of a rose opened the door. She looked past Liam and squinted. “Louis? I haven’t seen you in a long time.” 

“Yeah, I guess we haven’t been at the family gatherings that much.” She nodded her head. “This is Liam.” Louis smiled at her, in a way that Liam understood to mean _Say some shit, I dare you_. 

Kathy looked at Liam, and looked him over for a minute. Then she smiled at him, showing crooked teeth, and let them both in. “I’m sorry, it doesn’t look all that good, I know. But look it over. I’ll show you outside too.” As they entered the house, Liam heard barking and saw a small terrier head his way. “Josie, be good!” 

Louis knelt down to pet the dog, while Liam did a quick scan of the living room. It was stuffy, the shades drawn and it was musty. Kathy wasn’t much of a housekeeper, it was true, but Liam tried to look for actual things they’d have to fix. 

The kitchen was pretty good. “Do you have a garbage disposal?” He said as Kathy came back into the room, with a cigarette. _So, smoking in the house, noted._

“Naw hon, sorry. Hey, how have you kept that accent? Haven’t you been here for about ten years?” 

“It’s changed, my sisters like to make fun of me,” he said, smiling nervously. Kathy grinned and got him a beer. “Thank you. Is there anything wrong that we should know about?” 

“Come take a look with me. I think Louis is playing fetch with my dog.” Liam shook his head, and he went with her. 

She took him to the bedrooms first. There were two of them, and a small room near the back that Kathy said could be used as a bedroom or an office. Currently it was crowded with craft supplies. Karen didn’t look like the needlework type, but what did he know.

Liam stared at the ceilings, one of which had a big stain but seemed okay otherwise. The house had a regular bath and a half-bath. Liam winced when he saw the half-bath. The tile color scheme was truly awful. Pink and black, yuck.

“Yeah, always been meanin’ to change that myself,” Kathy said, and then she took him out into the backyard. “Back here’s the lawn, small but looks okay. That’s my vegetable garden, do you want to keep it? The soil’s a little acidic.” 

“I’ve never kept a garden, I wouldn’t know how,” Liam said. He thought it might not be a bad idea, though. A few tomato plants never hurt anything. “Is that a tool shed?”

“Yeah, come on over and take a look.” They walked back to the shed (a bit rusty), and then Liam took a good look at the foundation. That part seemed sound. He went back and checked all the outlets-being an electrician was a help, sometimes. 

Louis seemed to be gone most of the time, until Liam saw him in the basement, looking casual. Liam didn’t point him out to Kathy, and kept looking around himself. “Is there anything else we should know?”

“Might be needing a new hot water heater,” she said. “Also it’s electric. If you want to install a gas stove, that’s on ya’ll. I don’t have that.” She went and got another cigarette. “Ya’ll think about it, and give me a call in a couple of days?” 

“Sure, Aunt Kathy,” Louis said, appearing at his side out of nowhere. “Thanks for letting us see the house.” 

“Sure thing. Oh, and let me heat up some dinner. I fixed pork chops and mashed potatoes, but I put it in the fridge.” Louis looked over at Liam and nodded. Kathy heated everything in the microwave, and they had a quick dinner in the living room, with more beer. Louis fed bits of his pork chop to Josie and Liam rolled his eyes. 

“Okay then,” Kathy said, standing up. “It was good to see ya’ll. I’ll be waiting on that call.” She took their plates and Louis and Liam headed for the door.

“See you Aunt Kathy.” Liam noted that Louis didn’t hug her like he did most of his relatives, but instead just waved goodbye. 

“I can’t believe you played with her dog the entire time,” Liam said in the car. Louis just giggled. 

“You have no faith in me. I was actually sneaking around, seeing the stuff she didn’t show you. She didn’t mention the exposed wiring did she? And the basement needs some work.” 

“We didn’t see anywhere near all of it,” Liam said. “But it’s a start I suppose. Nobody else is going to sell to us. Should we just give it a try?” 

“Not yet. Let’s get someone who knows something about houses to look at it. Hey, why don’t we ask Bob? He’s in construction after all.” Louis looked out of the window. “I wonder if we’ll be accepted out here. Or at least, that nobody will put a dead possum in our mailbox.”

“Don’t even say that. Yes, let’s get Bob to look it over before we make an offer. He won’t mind.” Liam drove them back to their place, his mind whirring. He could imagine them moving in, already, fencing in the backyard, getting a dog. He had to pull his mind away from that. They didn’t have anything set in stone yet.

…

The next weekend, they were back out there with Bob, also Ray. Aunt Kathy was out for the day, and let them have the keys. Liam looked around more carefully, and saw the exposed wiring, and a few other problems that he could fix himself. Bob took a close look at the foundation and pronounced it sound, while Ray looked at the cupboards, walls, and floors. 

After a while, they all gathered in the living room. “What’s the verdict? Is it worth it?” 

“Well,” Ray said, and pulled out a small notepad from his jeans pocket. “Let’s write a list of what needs fixing first. The wiring, that’s for sure. That tile in the half-bath can wait, but it’s horrible.” 

“No way should gay people have to put up with that,” Louis grumbled. Liam had to agree with him. 

“Okay, new water heater-we can get Kathy to pay for that, if she has it.” Ray wrote that down. “Do you want to install a garbage disposal or not?”

“It’s not urgent,” Liam said, and Ray checked that off. “Did we really see everything? Should we look more?” 

“You’re going to have to clean the place, unless you want Louis to start smoking again,” Bob said. Louis nodded-he’d quit social smoking a few years ago, but he still got cravings. “So, I guess it’s up to you if you want to make an offer.” 

“Maybe,” Liam looked at Louis. “I’ll ask her about the heater.” 

“Might be the only chance we’ve got,” Louis said, smiling. “Let’s try it.” 

“Okay,” and then Liam was helplessly grinning back at his boyfriend. They were going to get a house.

…

It was a little bit of back and forth. Kathy did replace the hot water heater, and Liam installed it for her. “You’re gonna fix this place up yourself?” She said when she saw Liam put it in. 

“Us and our friends, we know a lot of people who can help.” Kathy nodded. 

“Yeah, you know that bar owner. He gets a lot of stuff done. I’ve never met him, but you know how people talk.” Liam wanted to ask her what she’d heard, but Kathy just she sat down and talked to her dog for the rest of the visit. Liam figured she was pretty strange, but not hard to deal with. 

Jo reminded them to get a termite inspection, so that was one other thing. Then a couple of weeks later, they were seated in a lawyer’s office with their lawyer, Kathy and her lawyer, and a guy from the bank. They all looked over the paperwork, and then they signed them. And just like that, they had a house. 

“Well, that’s that,” Louis said, and he took Liam’s arm, steering a slightly stunned Liam out the door. “Do you want me to try to drive? You seem like you need a moment.” 

“Maybe,” Liam said, blinking in the sunlight outdoors. Louis had been taking lessons, but he wasn’t licensed. “Kathy moves out in two weeks, right?”

“Moves out and leaves Georgia, I heard,” Louis said. Kathy was in the parking lot, but not close enough to hear them. “Mom says she’s going to Vegas.”

“Huh.” Liam wasn’t sure how he felt about that. Vegas was a far cry from Georgia. But Kathy was a grown woman and could take care of herself. From what little they’d talked about, he had gotten that she thought of herself as the family black sheep. Maybe she needed some space. “You don’t think we’ve missed anything, have we?” 

“We’ve got a little time before we move in. Now let’s go celebrate before you worry yourself out of being happy.” Louis took the car keys from him, and carefully drove them to their favorite place for lunch.

…

After Aunt Kathy left for Vegas, Liam and Louis rented a truck, got all their available friends, and descended on the small house. Liam went to work on the wiring, while Bob went over the wooden floods with a polisher. Ray gave the shutters a new coat of paint, and also painted some of the faded spots on the house. Louis went outside and mowed the lawn, using his mom’s borrowed lawn mower. 

After a while, they broke for lunch, ordering pizza. They ate it on the back deck, and after a few minutes Liam realized they were being stared at. A tiny angry looking old man was glaring at them. Liam nodded at him, and he looked disgusted and went back in. 

“Guess we won’t be getting a warm welcome from that house then,” Louis said. Liam looked over at him, and Louis put a hand on his back. “Never mind. They’ll get used to us, or they’ll leave.” 

“It’s the same where I live,” Bob said. “At least Harry being from a good family keeps them from doing anything to my face.” 

“Yeah, too bad my family are white trash,” Louis said, and Liam pinched him. “Ow! Liam doesn’t approve of that term.” 

“I do not. Don’t worry about the neighbors, we’ll work things out. Is there anything else we need to do before we start moving in?”

“Oh, that reminds me,” Louis said. “Harry and Zayn want to help pick out furniture and decorate. Which means this place will look like a Bollywood drag nest if we don’t watch them. What do you think?”

“I think we ask for their help, but don’t feel like we should take all of their advice,” Liam said, and Bob nodded, laughing. “They’re some of the most talented and creative people we know.”

“I’d like to think I’m included in that,” Ray said, and Liam nodded. “Good. Long as I make the list.” Ray grinned then and stood up. “So, time to clean up and we do more tomorrow? Or should we try for more?”

“Done for now I think. Back tomorrow. We need to get this done, we’ve only got one month at our apartment.” Liam stood up too. “I really hope we can get this place ready to move in soon.” And then he put the neighbor out of his mind. 

…

They did come back the next day, with a few more of their friends. Niall and Ray got to work on the hideous tile in the half-bath, while Bob and Liam deep cleaned as much as they could, trying to get rid of the smoke smell. Louis tended the yard some more, trimming bushes and weeding the garden. Harry and Zayn came to see how the house was laid out, and murmured ideas for decorating to themselves. Liam was too busy to worry about what they had in store. 

When they were done for the day, they sat back outside on the deck, eating take-out from the nearest restaurant that wasn’t delivery pizza. They specialized in fried fish and good sandwiches, and they had worked up an appetite. So it took Liam a while to notice someone peering over the fence at them.

It wasn’t the little old man from last time. It was an even shorter woman, barely able to see over the fence, looking at them with more curiosity than disgust. Liam waved at her, and she waved back, then got her garden hoe and went back to weeding. 

“Huh.” Louis looked over at Liam, meatball sandwich in one hand. “Maybe she’s a good influence on that old bastard.”

“Best not to insult him where she can hear,” Liam said. “But yes, let’s hope so.” Liam went back to eating his fish po’ boy. When he finished, he wandered back to the driveway, to see another car parked in front. It was a nice looking 70’s muscle car, and Mikey and Gerard were piling out of it, with who must have been Gerard’s girlfriend. “Well, weren’t expecting you,” Liam said. It was an understatement.

“Hi!” Gerard gave Liam his hand to shake. He looked happy and animated, wearing nothing but black in the Georgia heat. His girlfriend was also in black and with bright red lipstick. They both had on dark sunglasses. “I know you don’t know me very well, but you know Mikey-” he jammed a thumb in the direction of his brother-”And we wanted to see if there’s anything we can do to help. And this is Lindsey, my new bride.” He beamed.

“Really? When did you two get married?” Gerard grinned and started telling an involved story about going to Daytona and getting married in matching airbrushed unicorn t-shirts. Mikey nudged him at one point, and Liam turned to see him shaking his head, grinning. He’d never thought before now that maybe Gerard was eccentric even to his own brother. Mikey was plenty strange himself. “Well, I’m very happy for you. We just ate, but we can get some more takeout for you if you want.” 

“No, that’s fine, we just wanted to see the place and if we can help with it. Is Zayn here? That’s Niall’s car.” Liam agreed that he was, and walked with them to the front door. 

They found Harry and Zayn sitting on a blanket in the middle of the room, making a list. “Hey,” Harry said, grinning at them. “Didn’t expect ya’ll to come to the party.” Niall walked into the living room then, and stopped when he saw Gerard. Gerard stepped forward and held his hand out. Niall took it, and that was that, it seemed.

“We wanted to know if there’s anything we can do,” Gerard said. Lindsey and Mikey were checking out the ceilings, and Liam went to show them around. Lindsey had a lot of decorating tips, designed to use the space available. It was a small house. 

“Hey, is Ray here?” That was Mikey, the first thing he’d said since he got there. Liam nodded, remembering the on-again, off-again relationship the two had. “Is he out back?” 

“Yeah, go say hi if you want.” And Mikey was gone like that. Lindsey watched him go. “Is Mikey doing okay?” Liam asked in a low voice.

“Mostly. I think he just misses Ray. Personally, I think they’re good for each other.” She looked back at the walls. “Hey, me and Gerard are artists. Do you mind if we paint you guys something? We can even paint murals on the walls if you like.” 

“Maybe just canvas, to start out,” Liam said, and she laughed and punched his arm. 

When Liam got back to the living room, he found Gerard, Harry, and Zayn all hunched over a sketchbook Gerard had. “Are you all making plans for our house?” 

Harry looked up. “We might be. Honestly I know Lou’s taste better than yours. If all three of us decorated it would clash like hell. Zayn wants every color of the rainbow, and Gerard only likes black.” 

“Fuck you, I like gray too,” Gerard said, not looking up from his sketching. 

“Well, maybe we’ll take you two shopping with us,” Liam said. “We have some money left over for furnishings.” Just then Louis and Bob came back from outside, Louis wiping his brow. 

“We need to get the a/c turned on here soon as possible,” he grumbled. “It’s hot as hell out there.” 

“We’re not turning it on until we’re ready to move in,” Liam said. “Which might not be that long. Things seem to be going well. Want something to drink?” They had brought a cooler with them, full of water and sodas.

“Yes please. Water. Wish we’d brought some sweet tea.” Liam handed him a water bottle. “We came back in to give Mikey and Ray some privacy.” 

“Oh?” Gerard raised an eyebrow. “Are they talking?”

“Yeah.” Louis sat on the floor near them, drinking the water. “They walked off to the shady spot in the yard. I don’t know what’s going on, but I hope it’s good.”

“Good. I hope they work things out. Mikey’s so stubborn.” Liam knew there was more to it than that- Mikey had drug and alcohol problems as well as Gerard. Ray didn’t always want to put up with it, and Liam couldn’t blame him. Liam got a water too, and everyone just hung out for a while in silence. 

“Well,” Louis said, “It looks like we’ll be ready to move in soon. Are we getting rid of all our furniture or just getting new pieces? And which one of these three are we listening to?” He pointed a thumb at Zayn, Gerard and Zayn.

“Maybe Lindsey,” Liam said, and she clapped her hands. “She’s got a lot of ideas.” 

“My wife’s more talented than me,” Gerard said, proud. Liam couldn’t disagree, at least in this case. Harry pouted slightly, but Zayn just grinned. 

“I’m fine with that,” Louis said. “Nothing too gothic, though, all right? I mean, I like the Cure but...” 

“Not a problem. Maybe tell me what furniture you’re planning on keeping, and I can make suggestions based on that. Do you have any pictures?” Liam was a bit amazed that she was willing to help them like this, she barely knew them.

“I can take some when we get home, I’ll give you the pictures. Maybe we can have lunch sometime. You two live close by, right?”Louis seemed to like Lindsey. Liam liked her too, even if he still thought Gerard was a bit erratic and strange. 

“Pretty close,” she said, and sat down next to Louis. “The thing is, I’m going back to college for interior design. So I’d like to get some practice in. You’re the only person we know that’s moving right now, so I thought I’d try to help.”

“Thank you,” Louis said. “I hope your school time goes well.” Liam echoed what Louis said, thinking this made a lot more sense now. 

But Gerard and Lindsey were all-right people, and part of their community in their own way. Liam decided they’d accept the help. 

They sat and chatted for a while, until Mikey and Ray came back in. Mikey looked the same he always did, but Ray had a soft, fond look on his face. Liam decided not to comment, instead standing up. “Okay, let’s leave it for the day. We can finish the tile next time, I’m coming back after work tomorrow, if anyone can make it. I’ve already picked some out.”  
“What color?” That was Zayn.

“White. It’s a small space, too much color will just make it seem smaller.” They all started getting up then. Liam gave Lindsey their number. “We’ll send you photos soon. Can I get your address?” Lindsey gave it to them, Liam writing it down in Ray’s pocket notebook. Then Liam gave her and Gerard a hug. “Thank you. Come by soon.”

“We will.” Gerard waved, and Mikey left too, getting a ride with Ray. Niall, Zayn, Harry and Bob left next, all talking soft to each other. Liam was pretty sure they were going back to Bob’s for an evening of fun. After all, they used to do the same.

Then they locked up and headed back to their apartment. Louis was a bit quiet. “Everything okay?” Liam asked.

“Yeah, we just….we have really good friends.” Louis looked out the window. “When I was just figuring myself out, I thought I would be all alone.”

“Me too,” Liam said. “We’re really lucky.” He remembered how isolated he’d been as a teen, and in the Marines. The only person who knew the real him was Andy. That might have been why he was so obsessed with him then. “You turned out to be right, this is a good place.”

“It took time,” Louis said. “Bob should get most of the credit. I remember when his place opened, I thought it would only last a month. You should’ve seen it, hardly anyone was there. It took a while before people felt brave enough to come have a beer in a gay bar that close to home.” 

“Bob and Harry have been really good to the people around here,” Liam said. They pulled up to their apartment complex. “Do you have a camera? You can take some pictures of our stuff. Or let’s make a list of what we want to keep first.”

“In a minute. I need to take a shower, I stink.” Louis got out of the car, and headed up to their apartment. By the time Liam got in there, Louis already had the shower started. Liam sat on their bed, tired. 

“Liam,” Louis said. “Come shower with me?”

Well, maybe not that tired. Liam grinned and walked to the bathroom, pulling his shirt over his head.

…

It took some time, but soon they got the house ready to move in. Liam fixed the half-bath, and Louis had lunch with Lindsey a few times to show her pictures of their furniture and for her to give them advice. Finally they borrowed one of Bob’s biggest trucks. They moved in, going fast as they could. Ray and Bob were there to help, everyone else unavailable. 

“Lazy bastards,” Louis said as he and Liam moved the couch in.

“Not true, at least not in all cases. Some people had to work.” They set the couch down, and Liam stretched his back. “We can do it.” 

They was lots of sweating and complaining, but they got what furniture they had in the house. They also had boxes full of their stuff, some of which they opened, some not. They were almost done when the doorbell rang. 

“Who’s at the door?” Louis went to answer it. “Oh. Hello.”

It was the tiny old lady from next door, holding a cake. “Hi. I know we haven’t spoken, but I heard you were Kathy’s nephew, and she used to go to church with us. So this is just a welcome, if that’s okay.”

“Oh. Thank you very much. I’m Louis.” She nodded. “This is Liam.” She looked over at him, and then Bob and Ray. Liam could see the moment when she realized who they were, but she didn’t say anything. “Thank you for the cake. We’ll probably eat it right now.”

“You go on ahead then. I’ll see you. Have a good day.” And then she was gone.

Louis took the cake into the kitchen. “Someone unpack the cutlery, I think this is an apple cake.” Then he pulled out a small piece of paper. “There’s a card on it.” He read aloud “In the name of the Lord, we pray that all abortions in this country be stopped-ew.” Liam took the card and threw it in the garbage.

“Think she poisoned the cake?” Bob stared at it. 

“I doubt that, she didn’t seem to care much about us being together. Unless she thinks Liam’s my brother or something. I’m still willing to eat it.” 

“You’d eat anything.” Liam found a butter knife, and some plates and forks. Then they all ate the (non-poisoned) cake, finishing it off in fifteen minutes. They were hungry.

When the cake was eaten and the furniture all in place, Ray and Bob begged off. “Thank you,” Liam said, hugging Bob. “Let me know when you need me to return the favor.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I will,” Bob said. “Don’t worry about that. Okay, now I have to drop Ray off, and go home. You two rest up.” Liam hugged Ray, then they were gone. Liam and Louis collapsed on the bed. 

“Holy shit,” Liam said. “We did it.” 

“I know,” Louis said. “And here were are. And we remembered to get the power on, a/c, everything. I think so anyway. Did we forget anything?” 

“”We’ll need to get the cable hooked up. Then we just need to buy more furnishings for the other rooms. We’re got a guest room now. Oh, and we should have a party soon.”

“Yes we should. And yes, a guest room, And someday, maybe a baby’s room. I have no idea how we’re going to pull that one off, by the way.”

“It’s possible to do private adoptions here,” Liam said. Most adoption agencies in Georgia didn’t deal with gay couples, but there were other ways. “We might get a surrogate.” 

“I wouldn’t feel comfortable asking one of our friends to do that for us,” Louis said. “That’s nine whole months. It’s a big favor, even if we pay for everything.” Louis rolled over so he was facing Liam. “I’d rather adopt.” 

“Yes. If we can.” Liam pulled Louis in closer and kissed him. “You’re amazing. I can’t believe we’ve made it this far.” 

“I know. We work well together.” Louis kissed him softly, and rubbed his thumb over Liam’s jaw. “You ready to fuck me in our new house?” He grinned at that.

“Of course.” Liam kissed Louis again, then went rummaging through the nightstand drawer. 

“Um, darling, which box has the lube?”


End file.
